Could Cleveland Indians be Rockies’ trade partner for pitching?

Rockies right fielder Carlos Gonzalez says he’s happy in Denver, but his name is sure to come up during trade discussions this winter. (Doug Pensinger, Getty Images)

I was trolling big-league waters for possible trades that would bring pitching to Colorado when I netted an interesting article from Paul Hoynes, the respected baseball writer for the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

“To get the hitter they need, the Indians are going to have to trade one of their top starters — Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Danny Salazar or Trevor Bauer. Or they could deal young starter Cody Anderson along with a prospect like Bradley Zimmer or Clint Frazier.”

The Rockies have two players who might fit the Indians’ needs: Outfielders Carlos Gonzalez and Corey Dickerson. The Rockies need quality pitching and they are going to have to give up something valuable to get it. Could the Indians be a legitimate trade partner?

Here is more from Hoynes:

“Among the Tribe’s starting pitchers, Carrasco and Salazar would bring the biggest return. It’s hard to imagine the Indians trading Kluber, their ace, who signed a five-year, $38.5 million deal at the start of last season. There’s also the matter of Kluber going from a Cy Young winner in 2014 to leading the AL with 16 losses this year. Teams are smart enough to realize Kluber’s 2015 stats, with the exception of wins and losses, were in line with his Cy Young numbers, but 16 losses is hard to sweep under the rug.

“Carrasco, 28, went 14-12 with a 3.63 ERA in 30 starts last season. He set career highs across the board and, like Kluber, signed a multiyear deal at the start of last season. Carrasco just finished the first year of a four-year, $22 million deal with two club options.”

Rockies GM Jeff Bridich has said that Gonzalez is “part of the Rockies’ core.” But Bridich has also made it clear that he’s willing to listen to offers, and by trading Troy Tulowitzki to Toronto in late July, Bridich showed he’ll pull the trigger on a bold move.

CarGo, who won a Silver Slugger Award last week, told Nick Groke that he’s happy being a Rockie and is already looking forward to spring training.

Trading Gonzalez to Cleveland for pitching has some merit, but how realistic is it? That’s difficult to say. His contract could be problematic for a team like the Indians. Gonzalez will make $17 million in 2016 and $20 million in 2017 before becoming a free agent. Cleveland’s $86 million payroll in 2015 was last in the the AL Central and was one of the smallest in the majors.

A Dickerson trade might be a better fit. He’s a season short of arbitration and is a powerful young hitter. In a full season in 2014, he hit .312 with 24 homers and 76 RBIs in 131 games. His 2015 season was marred by injuries (most notably plantar fasciitis), but if teams view him as healthy, he could be a coveted player.

I’m not saying a trade with Cleveland will happen. I’m just exploring, as I’m sure Bridich and his crew are doing as well.

Love how you’re “just joining the party” and trying to spin an article to sound like such an original idea from another columnist and your own brainstorming.

Go back two months ago and I suggested this trade: Dickerson/Blackmon, Rosario, and I’d even consider Eddie Butler (down to 1 option) to the Indians for Danny Salazar or Corey Kluber (Carrasco doesn’t fit well here, Bauer doesn’t have the makeup) and Zimmer/Frazier. I’d prefer Salazar, his profile fits great here, he’s durable, and he’s under control for years. After De la Rosa becomes a FA next year, we can’t expect Gray to be ready to take that type of leadership. Having a stable guy like Salazar or Kluber would be ideal, allowing for Gray/Hoffman/Freeland/Matzek/Bettis/Anderson/Senzatela/Castro? to fill out things. That’s an impressive list coming in the next year or two, and thats without Lyles and Chatswood, and assuming Butler is included in the trade; borderline guys like Musgrave, Balog, Carle not even mentioned.
If I was able to pull off that trade, I’d strongly consider attempting to sign Mike Leake. That would bring stability to a rotation as soon as 2016.. and pitching is ALWAYS in demand. So any holes we develop offensively we can trade for because while you can never have enough pitching, you also have so only so many spots so it creates options. This pitching wave coming has talent unlike the fans in Colorado are used to seeing. But then again, who am I? I’m not the GM and I’m not the Monforts…..

Sign Austin Jackson to fill that gap in the OF for a year or two. A Cargo, Jackson, Blackmon/Dickerson outfield is above average for a year or two, and then turn it over as guys like Dahl, Tapia, and Frazier/Zimmer make their way in. That’s a cheap OF, pitching is still on the cheaper side, this opens up the payroll to commit to Nolan Arenado as we need to. Hopefully Story can hold SS for a few years, I worry about his strikeouts, but at least until Rodgers is ready.

Consider a guy like Napoli for 1B as a platoon with Paulsen, and after locking up Nolan move McMahon to play first. If one of the OF’s fails at the MLB level, a guy like McMahon is able to move to the OF as well.

Armchair GM…

snowyphile

Corey’s trade value is diminished because of his chronic foot problems.

Jimbotronn

He had a problem with his foot last season. As far as I know, that was the first issue he’d had with it, which means it’s a long way from being a chronic foot problem.

prairie7

Cory Dickerson’s trade value is still very high. He’s young and he still hit .304 in limited duty while being injured. Also, an American League team would be able to rest him at DH from time to time if he needed it. I think he’s healthy and he should bring good package at only 26 years old. CarGo’s contract would likely make trading him less likely and I believe he is worth keeping. When healthy he is one of the best players in the game and one of the best clutch hitters. It also would make sense to trade a left-handed hitter as the Rockies have an abundance of left-handed hitting outfielders. I think Charlie Blackmon stays because he provides a needed element of speed (with power) at the top of the order. Brandon Barnes is already signed for next year. He is an outstanding fielder and hustles his butt off (and is right handed). He doesn’t have the bat of Dickerson or Blackmon but is serviceable at the plate in a stacked outfield. Pitching is what the Rockies need and they will likely need to give up a big bat to get it. They could also throw Reyes in a trade…

Patrick, a third-generation Colorado native, is back for his second stint covering the Rockies. He first covered the team from 2005-2009, helping chronicle “Rocktober” in 2007 and also following the team’s playoff run in 2009.

Nick Groke has worked at The Denver Post since 1997, as a sports reporter, city reporter, entertainment writer and digital editor and producer, among other newsroom posts. He also writes regularly about boxing, soccer, MMA and NASCAR.